Water scarcity: Kalabagh Dam case fixed for hearing in SC

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Mian Saqib Nisar has taken notice of the acute shortage of water throughout the country and has fixed the matter to hear the problem at Islamabad and subsequently at respective branch registries at Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta.

The water scarcity matter in Islamabad has been fixed on 7th June, 2018. Moreover, notices have been issued to the attorney general for Pakistan, advocate general, Islamabad, CADD Secretary, Metropolitan Corporation Mayor, Islamabad chief commissioner, and CDA chairman.

Likewise, the chief justice took notice of the incidents of fire at Margalla Hills posing serious threats to the forest, wildlife and environment in general and issued notices to the attorney general for Pakistan, environment secretary, CADD Secretary, Metropolitan Corporation Mayor, Islamabad Chief Commissioner and CDA chairman and has fix the matter for hearing on 7th June, 2018.

Meanwhile, the chief justice, while hearing petitions regarding environmental pollution as well as water scarcity and construction of new water dams declared that provision of clean water is their basic priority adding that it is rather the basic right of their children.

Barrister Zafrullah Khan of Watan Party had filed petitions regarding environmental pollution as well as seeking construction of new dams in order to overcome the water scarcity. He had contended that no new dam has been constructed since the creation of Pakistan. He had submitted that pollution in Pakistan is archrivals of wars and violence and even hunger and natural disaster when it comes to causing deaths.

In Pakistan in 2015, he said some 311,189 died because of pollution; whereas, pollution worldwide claimed the lives of nine million people in 2015, but our share was more comparative than other countries.

Proportionately, he contended low-income countries pay 8.3 percent of their gross national income to pollution-related deaths and diseases while high income countries pay 4.5 percent. During the hearing the chief justice remarked that from now their most priority is provision of clean drinking water, which, he said, was also the basic right of children. The CJ said that water related cases of Karachi will be resumed in Karachi Registry on Saturday and on Sunday in Lahore. He said that water scarcity is like a cancer for the country adding that with the construction of Kishan Ganga dam, the River Neelum will get dried. Justice Sardar Tariq, another member of the bench, observed that scarcity of water and construction of new dam is not the priority of any political party.

The petitioner contended that he has been fighting for the construction of Kalabagh Dam adding that it should be made mandatory for every political party to promise construction of dams before contesting election. He further said that a chit of referendum for construction of the Kalabagh dam should be included with the vote in the forthcoming general election. The chief justice, however, said that he would do whatever he could to overcome the scarcity of water, and from now water is the only priority for the court.